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Mayor of Kansas City talks about the city's lawsuit on gun trafficking
Credit: Chris Haxel / KCUR 89.3.

Mayors Against Illegal Guns members, along with Everytown Law, are leading the way by challenging state firearm preemption laws, and suing gun dealers and gun manufacturers involved in gun trafficking. Everytown Law attorneys are available to provide legal advice and representation to cities and elected officials seeking to advance and defend local gun safety ordinances.   

December 2023

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott Sues ATF to Get Critical Gun Crime Data

Everytown Law is representing the City of Baltimore in its lawsuit against the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”). Baltimore’s complaint alleges that ATF improperly denied its FOIA request for gun crime data. The City sought, among other items, the identity of the top ten sources of crime guns in Baltimore from 2018 to 2022 and the average time-to-crime for guns recovered in Baltimore in connection with homicides, suicides, and other circumstances. Through this lawsuit, the City hopes to compel disclosure of this critical data to further the City’s data-driven, targeted approach to countering gun violence in its communities.

July 2023

Westforth Sports, Long-time Dealer of Crime Guns, To Close After Lawsuit Exposed Persistent Violations of Federal and State Gun Laws

Indiana gun store Westforth Sports has announced its closure and inventory liquidation after being targeted in an ongoing lawsuit brought by Everytown Law, Chicago Department of Law, and Mayer Brown LLP. The lawsuit aims to hold the store accountable for enabling illegal gun trafficking from Indiana to Illinois over many years. Chicago police data shows that from 2009-2016, Westforth Sports was the primary out-of-state source of crime guns recovered in the city. The lawsuit, filed in 2021, alleges that the store repeatedly violated federal gun laws, facilitating straw purchasing and gun trafficking, resulting in numerous firearms being used in serious crimes in Chicago.

March 2023

City Of Kansas City And Everytown Law Announce Settlement Agreement With Kansas City Area Gun Store To Prevent Illegal Gun Purchases

Kansas City, MO, represented by Everytown Law, has settled its lawsuit against a local gun shop for facilitating illegal handgun transfers on behalf of a convicted gun trafficker. As part of the settlement, the gun shop has agreed to enforce written policies aimed at preventing trafficking and straw-purchasing of firearms, including annual staff training, maintaining video recordings of gun transfers, verifying transfer documents, and imposing a maximum for monthly handgun purchases. An independent monitor will review and verify that these policies are being followed for five years.

October 2022

Minnesota Attorney General Sues Gun Dealer Fleet Farms

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison sued gun dealer Fleet Farms, alleging it negligently sold stockpiles of guns to a gun trafficker. Several of the guns have been traced to crimes or suspected crimes. The lawsuit alleges Fleet Farm ignored red flags that the buyers were straw purchasers. The suit is asking for more oversight of Fleet Farm’s operation and more training for employees to help prevent further sales to straw buyers, among other things.

June 2022

New York Mayor Eric Adams and Attorney General Letitia James Sue National Gun Distributors

New York Attorney General Letitia James on Wednesday filed a landmark lawsuit against multiple gun distributors for fueling the gun violence crisis and endangering New Yorkers. The lawsuit alleges that 10 gun distributors sold tens of thousands of illegal, unfinished frames and receivers to New Yorkers that were then converted into unserialized, untraceable handguns and assault-style weapons, known as ghost guns. These gun distributors violated several laws, including New York’s licensing laws, by selling weapons to felons and others without a background check. Simultaneously, Mayor Eric Adams filed a lawsuit against five of these gun distributors in federal court.

April 2021

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot Sues Indiana Gun Store Tied to Crime Gun Recoveries

The City of Chicago brought a lawsuit against a Gary, Indiana gun store alleged to have sold hundreds of illegal guns trafficked into Chicago. The lawsuit alleges that the store repeatedly broke federal gun laws and ignored clear signs of straw purchases and gun trafficking, contributing to a public nuisance in the city.

January 2021

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas Brings Suit Against ATF for Granting Firearms License to Manufacturer Tied to Firearms Law Violations 

The State of Illinois, the City of Kansas City, Missouri, and Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund have filed a lawsuit to vacate the issuance of a firearms license to the successor company to the now-bankrupt gun manufacturer Jimenez Arms. The lawsuit cites evidence that Jimenez Arms repeatedly violated federal firearms laws, made misleading statements in obtaining a firearms license, and contributed to gun trafficking and criminal activity in Illinois and Kansas City. 

November 2020

Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein, Columbus Mayor Andy Ginther and Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley File first-of-its kind lawsuit alleging that court intervention is required to fix Ohio’s criminal background check system

The cities of Columbus and Dayton announced today they have filed a first-of-its kind lawsuit alleging that court intervention is required to remedy massive gaps that have plagued Ohio’s criminal background check databases for years, putting public safety at risk.  As a result of these gaps, the case alleges, thousands of people prohibited from possessing firearms because of a criminal conviction can currently pass background checks ⁠— including background checks required to buy firearms, obtain an Ohio concealed carry permit and be hired in sensitive positions including working with children.

August 2020

Chicago Mayor Lightfoot, Columbia Mayor Steven Benjamin, San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo and Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh Bring Suit Against ATF to address the growing threat from Ghost Guns

The cities of Syracuse, NY, San Jose, CA, Chicago, IL, and Columbia, SC, along with Everytown for Gun Safety, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York seeking a court order to compel the ATF to correct its dangerous misinterpretation of a critical gun safety law.  The lawsuit alleges that the ATF’s misinterpretation has allowed the explosive growth of unregulated ‘ghost guns’ that are increasingly being used to commit gun violence and other crimes across the country. 

January 2020

Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas Sues Gun manufacturer and dealer over the trafficking of handguns into the Kansas City area

Everytown Law represents Kansas City in a lawsuit against a Nevada gun manufacturer, multiple current or former Kansas City-area licensed firearms dealers, an alleged gun trafficker, and an alleged straw purchaser over the trafficking of handguns into the Kansas City area. The lawsuit alleges that the gun trafficking ring has created a public nuisance by contributing to Kansas City’s violent crime problem. 

September 2019

Everytown Law Defends Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller’s Administrative Order Prohibiting Guns in Community Centers

In an administrative instruction issued August 2019, the City of Albuquerque notified the public it would strictly enforce state laws that prohibit firearms in the City’s Community, Health, Multigenerational Centers, and Senior Centers. New Mexico law prohibits firearms in places like the centers, where school and university-related activities take place. Soon after the announcement, a legal challenge was brought against the City by a local gun rights group, alleging that the City’s enforcement violated the state and federal constitutions.

April 2019

Everytown Law Defends Gun Safety Ordinances Introduced by Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto

Everytown Law represents the City of Pittsburgh in a trio of lawsuits arising out of the passage of three gun-violence-prevention ordinances passed in the wake of the horrific massacre at the Tree of Life synagogue in October 2018. Gun rights activists immediately sued the city for daring to pass gun violence ordinances. 

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